Trouser hanger



zgsms 7 Aug, 14, 1945. R. H. WOLLIN TROUSER HANGER Filed Sept. 6, 1945 ATTO/PA/fK Patented Aug. 14, 1945 "TROUSER HANGER Itobert H. Wollin, Milwaukee, assignorto I Wolli'n, Inc., Milwaukee,"

- Application September a, 1943, SerialN0. atria-1.1,.

' 3Clai1ns. (o1.22"3f-'96)"R" This invention relates to improvements in trouser hangers. W

The principal object and'pu-rpose of my invention is to provide a trouser hanger having very little metal in its construction thereby enabling the hanger to be made almost entirely of wood or other inexpensive non-metallic material, yet be sufiiciently sturdy and strong to clamp a garment for hanging it in a dependent position in a closet, Wardrobe or theliker H Y A further object of my invention is to provide the hanger with a pair'oftrouser or garment clamping members hingedly' connected together for relativ movement towards and from each other for opening and closing the hanger. and havin 'a locking element on one member and movable into engagement withithe other member adjacent the hinge means for locking the members in their garment clamping or closed positions. q

A further object of my invention isto provide the locking element in the form of a lever pivotally mounted .on the member which supports it and swingable into and out of engagement with the other member for clamping and releasing a arment. v a A further object of my invention is to provide the locking lever with an inclined end portion to co-act withthe adjacent end of the othermemher for increasing the clamping pressure when clamping a garment in the hanger.

The invention consists further in the structural features hereinafter described and claimed.

I In the accompanying .drawing-- r Fig. 1 isa front elevational view of a trouser hanger constructed in accordance with my invention, one of the trouser clamping members being partly broken away for the sake of. illus tration; -p' Fig.2v is a vertical sectional view taken on line 2-2 of Fig. :1; 1

' Fig. 3 is an end view of thehanger with th trouser clamping members in openposition;

Fig. 4 is a top plan View of the hanger;

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary end view of a modified form of hanger construction of my invention to be hereinafter described; and

Fig. 6 is a front view with parts broken away of the modified structur shown in Fig. 5.

As shown in the drawing, the trouser hanger of my invention comprises a pair of trouser clamping members I, 2 hingedly connected together by a hinge means 3 for the relative movement of the members towards and from each other for opening and closing the hanger. Said terial.

W se-1 members I, 2 are inv substantially flat, one-piece formfashioned of thez'desired inexpensive material preferably from ply-wood stock. This .rendersthe hanger relatively light; for ease in handling and sufii cientlyrstrong and rigid to withstand breakage and warpingand tightly clamp the-garment forsuSpensionin a hanging .or dependent position.- w a 1 The members I. 2 have: straight integral jaw portions 4, 4 along the bottom of the hanger and long enough to fully extend across the lower or cuffed-ends of apairrof itrousersato be jclamped and hung up in acloset, wardrobe or the. like by the hanger. The jaw portions 4. are fitted at their opposite ends. .withopposed feltpieces .5, 5 to hold the garment against slippagein. thehanger and to prevent the clamping pressure. .marring the garment materiaL. 1. i

The members, 1. are; provided intermediate the ends of the jaw portions 4 with centrally upwardly extending rigidportions -6, 1 substantially alike and mounting. therebetween the hinge means 3. Thelatteriin the formshown inFigs. 1 to 4 comprisesa number of staple like fasten ers v8, -8 inserted intoeach of the-rigidportions 6,;11f10111 their opposed surface and a hinge pin 9 engaged in the loops-of the fasteners. The opposite ends of the hinge. pin ,9 are; respe,ctively headed and. spread tohold thepin in place. The hinge. means is sufficiently spacedfrom the bottom of the hanger to give awidespread to the members I; 2when opened toaccommodate the hanger, for garments. different-thicknesses of ma- -The rigid-portions 6, .1 ofthe, hanger members .I, 2 extend above the hinge means 3 to provide a space between the members-when closedto receiv e the. locking 6nd .Hlof a locking mem ber l I mounted on the member-I. The locking member I0 is in th form of a lever pivoted by a pivot pin l2 on the, hangermember I above the upper end of the member 2, Thelocking, end 10 of the lever II fills the spacebetween:themernbers l, 2 above the hinge and holds said members in .their closed or clamping. p sitions shown in Figs]. and 2. To provide a. icamming action to increase the clamping pressure of the hanger on the garment, the locking end IU of the lever II has an inclined or beveled surface l3 to contact the upper end of the member 2 as shown herein.

The lever II is mounted on the member I with its locking end I0, when in locking position, disposed between the side edges of th members as shown in full lines in Fig. 1. This protects the locking end HI of the lever II from being struck and coplanar with the rest of the member I. The, V

hook element ll opens to one side of the hanger as shown.

The modification shown in Figs.v vides for a wider spread for thejlianger members wide as the space between the members Ia, 2a

above the hinge means which connects-themf Also, the hinge means is slightly different structurally than the one shown in the previous figures.

Thehinge means showninFigs. 5 and 6 com-,-. prises screw eyes 11, i1 screwed into therespective members la, la and engaged by a hinge pin It held in placelbyasmallnail l9 driveninone of the hanger members and fitt'edinto amot'ch 20 in the pin as shown.v 1w ..l

Mrunted on the inner face of thehangermember 2a above the hinge is a taperedv or wedge shaped block II which is engaged by the inner end 22 of the lever ii. The end of the lever at the block II is inclined or beveled to co-act with the block to tightly clamp the member 2min closed position. A'stop (not shown) may be providedon the member la to prevent the lever it when swung into its unlocking position from entering between the membersla, 1a to hinder their movement into fullyopen positions:

The hanger devices shown and-described are simple in-eonstruction and operation and may be inexpensively made. The hinge means in particular comprise few metal iparts". The hanger de-- signs are sturdy andstrong and provide ample clamping pressure for holding a garmentuior hanging in-a dependent-position. In both iorm's shown, the locking members are above the'shorter f the two garment clamping membersiso that the locking memberswhen swung into unlocking positions will not hinder the hangers beingopened to the fullest extent. This-may be-done'by-press'- ing inwardly on the shorter member above the hinge while holding the longer member which forms the body member of the device in-both forms. with the lockingmember supported on the body member above the hinge, the locking member may be moved'into unlocking position to release a garment from-the-hanger withoutremoving it from its support. ll I The details of construction and arrangementoi parts shown and described may be variously changed and modified without departing from the spirit and scope of my invention, except as-pointed out in the annexedclaims.

Iclaim as my-invention:"-w' i 1. A trouser hanger of thecharacter described comprising, a pair of trouser clamping members;

and dpr o-y g U la, 20. and employs a locking lever l8 not'as' hinge means hingedly connecting said members for relative movement towards and from each other for opening and closing the hanger, said hinge means consisting of screw eyes inserted into the members and a pin inserted through the same, a stop fixed to one of the members and engaging the pin in a notch therein for holding the pin in place an d a locking element mounted on one member-and engageable with the other member for locking the same in closed or clamping position.

2. A garment hanger of the character described .comprlslng, a pair of opposed garment clamping members, each having a body portion comprised of substantially coplanar, connected, jaw and upwardly extending rigid portions, hinge means hingedly' connecting said members at their upwardly extending rigid portions for relative movement'of the jaw portions towards and from each other for opening and closing the hanger, one of said members having its upwardly extendin rigid portion extending above the correspondin! portion of the other member and terminating in means for suspending the hanger from an overhead support, and locking means carried by the member provided with, said;hanger suspending means, said locking means being movably mounted on said last named member between its hanger suspending means and the upper end portion of the other member, said locking means being movable substantially parallel to the membermounting it and transversely to said hinge means into the space between the members and engageable with both members to lock the same in closed position, the locking means engaging the upper end portion of the shorter member above the hinge means.

3. A garment hanger of the character described comprising, a pair of opposed garment clamping members, each having a body portion comprised of substantially coplanar, connected, jaw and upwardly extendingrigid portions, hinge means hingedly connecting said members at their upwardly extending rigid portions for relative movement of the jaw portions toward; and from each other for opening and closing the hanger, one of the members having its upwardly extending rigid portion extending above the corresponding portion of the other member and terminating in a. hook element for suspending the hanger from an overhead support, and a locking lever pivoted on the upwardly-extending rigid portion of the member provided with the hook element between the latter and the upper end or the upwardly extending rigid portion'o! the other member, said locking lever having itslocking-end movable substantially parallel to the member mounting the lever and independently of and transversely to said hinge means into the space between' the members and engageable with both members-to lock the same in closed position, the locking lever engaging the upper end-portion of: the shorter member above the-hinge means. r l

' I aonim'r H; wouim. 

